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December 19, 2014

#CSMPhotoprompt Album Days 4, 5 and 6

Hi there!

Hope you are all getting your holiday lists completed without too much stress. I'm slowly plugging away at mine, but I have been battling a bad cold this month which has slowed me down.  But, I did manage to get a few pages done in my December photo album.


 

 
 
I spent most of yesterday, watching Wilna Furstenburg's Heartfelt Christmas Workshop. It comes with a dozen videos, but also so many printables and diecut files!  I spent hours cutting shapes and printing embellishments. The "smile" page has a few of the diecuts from the workshop and I heat embossed them with Zing glitter embossing powder. I love, love, love that stuff!! Anyway, the workshop is well worth the $20 US and I highly recommend it.
 
After watching the videos, I think next year I will do a bigger album to include a bit more journaling. I'm finding it a challenge to add all the details that I want to include on these small pages.
 
Thanks for looking!
 
Sylvie
 
 

 

December 6, 2014

#CSMPhotoprompt December 2014

Hi there!

It's been a while since I posted something. But, I haven't really had time to make anything these past few weeks. Life has been way to hectic with work and visiting the kids in college and hockey. What time I did have for crafting, I used to make my Christmas cards. But, since I haven't mailed those yet, I don't want to post them here.

I was so excited when I saw that Canadian Scrapbooker Magazine was going to have the Instagram Photo Prompts for December, it got my creativity bubbling and I knew I had to make some time for this. I loved my little album I made last year and really wanted to do it again.  It's my own version of December Daily, which I know I would never have time to do.

As luck would have it, I missed work this week due to a cold. So, whenever I had a few minutes of energy, instead of cleaning the house (HA!) I started my mini album.


It's nothing fancy. I just want to get the photos in the album. So, I will be working with a kit I got last year from Scrap Shotz featuring SEI papers. I cut the tags with my Cricut and Plantin Schoolbook. For my embellishments, I have a sterlite drawer where I keep all my Christmas supplies. There are bits and pieces of punches and scraps that I have created from making Christmas cards or pages. I keep everything. They are perfect for using in mini books. The poinsettia on the cover is one I made quite a few years ago for a card. The stamp is Basic Grey/Hero Arts.




 




I'll post more pages as I get them done. My plan is to keep up. Fingers crossed. ;)

If you want to follow along on the photo prompts, just check out #csmphotoprompt on Instagram.

Thanks for looking!

Sylvie

 

November 7, 2014

The Greatest Gift is Family

Hi there!

I'm back again with one of the last pages in "Julia's Graduation Extravaganza"!  :) And it just so happens, it's one of my favourites!

Papers: American Crafts, Bazzill Basics; Embellishments: Lori Whitlock cut file, iHeartstudio
cut file,  Cricut Cartridge: Storybook, Teresa Collins, American Crafts, Echo Park sticker;  

The title is a Lori Whitlock cut file that cut beautifully with my Cricut and SCAL. And I'm still in love with this collection from Shimelle Laine. They are the perfect colours and patterns for my photos and so easy to work with. So glad I splurged and bought the whole collection.

Thanks for looking,
Sylvie

October 31, 2014

As seen on the Canadian Scrapbooker Blog!

Hi there!

Sorry to go missing for so long! Life kind of got away from me the last few weeks.

I was really excited to be asked to be a guest blogger on the Canadian Scrapbooker Magazine blog highlighting some of my grad layouts. You can check it out here. 

Here is one of the pages that I did for the article that I hadn't posted here.


Papers: American Crafts; Embellishments: Studio Calico, American Crafts;
Martha Stewart Punch, Simple Stories

I'm hoping to get back into the swing of things and finish up Julia's grad layouts. I only have a couple pages left.

And soon it will be Christmas card making season.  And the weeks will be flying by even faster!!

Thanks for looking!
Sylvie
 

October 10, 2014

Rocket Man

 
Hi there!
 
We interrupt "Julia's Graduation Extravaganza" to bring you ...dunh, dunh, dunh... a hockey page! 
 
My son is playing his second year of Junior hockey and he's been having a very good season, so far. His name has been in the paper a few times already, and like any good scrapbooker, I have to keep those clippings and print off those Facebook statuses. I needed a place to put them all, so I made a pocket page to keep them.
 
The photographer for the team posts fantastic photos on the team Facebook page so I printed some from there and created this page. Jamie gets way better photos than me! And even though the quality isn't great from Facebook, they printed quite nicely.
 
 

Papers & stickers: Simple Stories; Alphas: Fancy Pants Design, American Crafts Thickers,
Echo Park; Diecuts & Chipboard: Cosmo Cricket, Little Yellow Bicycle, Studio Calico


 
 
Did you notice that I updated my blog? It had been a while since I had changed it up and I thought it was time for a new look.  Let me know what you think!
 
Thanks for looking!
 
Sylvie

September 26, 2014

PL - Grad March

 
Hi there!
 
I'm finally starting to make some headway on the "Julia's Graduation Extravaganza" project. I'm so glad I chose to scrapbook most of the photos in pocket pages.
 


Papers: American Crafts (Shimelle), Basic Grey; Embellishments, Basic Grey,
American Crafts, Jillybean Soup,


 
The pages come together a bit quicker for me, now. Originally, I was obsessing over placement as much as a regular page, which I think is pretty much defeating the purpose of doing pocket pages. HA! But, I'm getting the hang of it and not decorating every.single.photo. And I think I'm getting the hang of creating flow. I have to say, this is my favourite pocket page spread I've ever done. But, I will admit that I'm looking forward to getting back to regular scrapbooking.

Thanks for looking!

Sylvie
 

September 19, 2014

This Way 2 Lovely

Hi there!
 
OK. To be honest, these photos were never going to be seen. They are of Julia getting ready for graduation. I took them with my cell phone and the lighting was horrible so they are kind of blurry. When sorting through the photos of the day, they didn't make the cut. But, mixing regular pages in with pocket pages left me with a naked spot at the front of Julia's grad story. So, I had to print them out and make a page. And in the end, I love this page!

 
Papers: My Mind's Eye; Diecuts and stickers: My Mind's Eye, Basic Grey, American Crafts;
Misc: Fancy Pants Buttons, Glitz Design flair; Prima Marketing Bling, unknown doily,
 
 
All the flowers are fussy cut from the My Mind's Eye paper which was a scrap. So, I'm pretty happy that I used it up. Also, in real life there is a bit more journaling between the bling on the left and the bottom cluster. It was a bit more personal, so I waited to add it. It fills up the space quite nicely. I used a silver gel pen so that it could be seen on the white and black paper.
 
Thanks for looking!
 
Sylvie







September 11, 2014

Grad Partners

Hi there!
 
This week, I decided to do some grad photos.
 
HA! I bet you didn't see that coming, did you?
 
I'm almost done documenting this special day in pocket pages and now I'm starting to scrap the  pages that mean something to me.
 
 

Papers: My Mind's Eye, Bazzill Basics Cardstock; American Crafts; Embellishments:
Prima Marketing, Studio Calico, American Crafts, Bo Bunny washi; Diecuts: iHeart Studio
cut file, Tim Holtz/Sizzix die, Bo Bunny & Maya Road stick pins;
Misc: Water colour paints, photo corners

Watching Julia with her grad partner was a special moment and I wanted to imitate the corsage with a rose-like flower. So I made a flower from coffee filters and this blinged out button. The flower is the Tattered Flower die from Tim Holtz and it's just many layers of coffee filters fluffed and folded. Then, I cut the leaves from an iHeart Studio die cut photo frame (I just cut away the frame part) and painted few colours of water colour paints to colour it green to match the grass in the background of the photos.
 
 
 
This was a quick and simple page that came together very quickly for me. And one of my favourites in the grad collection. ;)
 
Be sure to look for the next installment of  "Julia's Grad Extravaganza" next week. LOL!
 
Sylvie

September 5, 2014

Project Life - The Perfect Day

Hello there!

So, I am still swimming in grad photos. I haven't counted them, but I know I will never be able to scrap them all. So, I decided to scrap some in pocket pages. I can get so many more done this way and at the rate I was going, I would have needed a separate album just for Julia's grad!

These pages will just go in the family album, mixed in with the regular layouts. I sat down and pre-planned what photos I would scrapbook and what photos would go in pockets. I put the photos in the pockets and marked the regular page protectors with sticky notes to mark the place of the photos I wanted to scrapbook.

Here's what I've come up with, so far.



Papers: Cosmo Cricket, Elle's Studio; Embellishments: My Minds Eye, Jillibean Soup, Simple Stories;
Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher, Studio Calico Stamp, Miscellaneous rhinestones

 

Papers: Fancy Pants Design, American Crafts, Studio Calico, Simple Stories; Embellishments: Basic Grey,
Echo Park, Simple Stories, American Crafts, Elle's Studio, Lilybee alphas  



 
 
 
What I love about pocket page scrapping is that for some reason, I pull out all my older supplies. The Cosmo Cricket papers on the top page are probably 5 years old. But, I found these journaling cards and I thought the colours matched the happy vibe of the day.
 
These page protectors are from We R Memory Keepers, but I also bought some Project Life ones to mix in for more flexibility.
 
Hopefully, this method will help me make a dent in all the photos, soon.
 
Thanks for looking!
 
Sylvie

August 29, 2014

Lovely

Hi there!

Well, with a quick hug and goodbye, my baby girl has moved away.  She's settled in at  college residence and is finding her way on the commuter train and touring the city. To say I'm proud is an understatement. Sad also, but so proud.

So, now back to scrapbooking.

If you read my blog, you know I am a huge fan of Shimelle Laine's. I think I may have squealed when she announced that she was designing a product line. I knew I would have to buy every piece I could get my hands on. And I did just that!

Papers: Studio Calico, American Crafts, October Afternoon; Stickers & Diecuts:
American Crafts; My Minds Eye washi tape, Studio Calico wood veneer
Photo by Kendra Israelson Photography


I had already started this page, when the collection arrived in the mail, so I just added the embellishments to it. I love it when products work with other lines. It means I will be using up these products and not hoarding them.

TFL!

Sylvie

August 19, 2014

You Are So Beautiful


Hi there!
 
I'm still plugging away on Julia's grad photos. And these are my absolute favourites! And look! A two page layout!
 
 


Papers: Echo Park Designs, Little Yellow Bicycle; Diecuts & Stickers: Echo Park Designs,
Little Yellow Bicycle; Punches: Martha Stewart; Rhinestones
 
This page came together so easily for me.  These are older Echo Park papers, but they worked perfectly with the colour of Julia's dress and of the logging truck. And it's always a happy accident when two different paper lines work together. The year old Little Yellow Bicycle "Poppy" collection matched perfectly with the two year old Echo Park "For the Record 2" and "This and That" lines.
 
 

Photos by Kendra Israelson Photography

 
 
I'm hopeful that I'll have a couple more pages for next week. Summer is definitely slowing down. Whew!
 
Thanks for looking!
 
Sylvie

August 9, 2014

Two Time Graduate

Hello there!

Our summer has been sooooo busy!!! Weddings and grad reunions and family and friends!  It's been difficult to sit at the table to scrap, never mind uploading what little work I do get done,  onto my blog.

But, the leaves are starting to change colour and I just saw a flock of Canada Geese fly over my house, so it looks like fall is on it's way. And once the kids leave home (sob!) time will be my own, again.

When I do have a few minutes, I'm working on Julia's grad photos. And this is a photo that I couldn't wait to scrap.



Papers: American Crafts, Basic Grey, Crate Paper; Stickers & Diecuts: Fancy Pants,
American Crafts, Echo Park, Two Peas in a Bucket SVG; Miscellaneous:
watercolour paints, Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher
 
I found this photo idea on Pinterest and just knew I had to do the same for Julia. The kids were not impressed! I'm pretty sure the words "lame" or "seriously?" were used in their excitement at the idea of it. But, when the day came, Julia didn't put up a fuss at all. In fact, she just grabbed the photo and smiled. Hmmm. Perhaps it isn't such a "lame idea" after all?
 
 

Thanks for looking!
Sylvie

July 26, 2014

She Believed She Could

Hi there!

As usual, summer has been crazy busy around here! Not a lot of time for scrapbooking. It took me three weeks to get this page done. I'm usually a pretty slow scrapper to begin with, but this is ridiculous!!  Most of our commitments for the summer are done, so hopefully we can enjoy some lazy days in August.

This is the complement page to the other grad photo I did earlier this month. I wanted to add this Simple Stories 3x4 card as the title, because the quote is so perfect for Julia's experience with school. I fussy cut the flowers from a sheet of patterned paper and added lots of layering.


Papers: Fancy Pants Design; Embellishments: Prima, Studio Calico, Echo Park, Simple Stories, October Afternoon; Stamps: Simon Says Stamp, Kaiser Craft, Ranger ink


I wanted to write a letter to Julia, but didn't want the world to see it, so it is tucked into this Simple Stories envelope. So cool! I stamped it with the sentiment and tucked in the letter.

 
 
So, I'm slowly plugging away at grad. Hopefully, I will have another layout completed in a few days.
 
Thanks for looking!
Sylvie

July 4, 2014

Your Adventure Awaits

Hi there!

Well, as promised a couple days ago, here is the first of my grad layouts for my daughter.  I bought this Fancy Pants paper a while ago and just knew it would be perfect for a grad layout. And I'm so happy with how it turned out.


Papers: Fancy Pants Design; Embellishments: American Crafts Thickers, Fancy Pants
buttons and diecuts; My Minds Eye washi tape; Martha Stewart punch


There is nothing fancy here - no new techniques. I thought the dark bold colours of the paper matched the bold colours of the photo. And with the bold colours, I didn't think it needed a lot of embellishment. It's one of the fastest pages I have ever done. Just over an hour! That may be a record for this slow scrapper.

Thanks for looking,

Sylvie

July 2, 2014

Did you miss me?

Hi there!

I know it's been a while since I updated my blog.  There have been a few events in my life that kept me from having any time to scrap at all.

First of all, I decided in the spring that I would leave the Stuck On U Sketches design team. I knew that with everything that was happening in my life, I wouldn't have much time to scrapbook and I didn't want to let the team down. I want to thank Leah and Nanne for the opportunity to work for them. I really enjoyed it. And maybe when the next design team call comes out, I may just apply again!

On the home front, our daughter graduated high school last week. There was so much to do (hair, makeup, mani/pedis, etc) but, I did find some time to use my scrapbooking talents to do some crafts. This is the banner I made as props for grad photos with friends and then for a decoration at the family BBQ.




Papers: Fancy Pants, Pink Paislee, Jillibean Soup, Bazzill Basics; Embellishments, Jillibean Soup, Teresa Collins, Pink Paislee

 

 
For the BBQ, I hung it from an old door we have as a decoration on the deck, along with Julia's school photos from Kindergarten to Grade 12.  It doesn't look like much here, but it looked very cute in real life. And Julia was embarrassed, my job was done. LOL!
 

 
 
And here's how it looked with the girls holding the banner. Aren't they cute???
 
 
 
So, that's all I have for you, today. But, I did start scrapping some of the grad photos, so I should have that uploaded in a couple of days. Just warning you that instead of hockey layouts, I'll be scrapping grad layouts for a while. That's just how I roll.
 
Thanks for looking!
 
Sylvie

May 29, 2014

Look Who's Hot in the KI - SOUS Diecut Challenge *Circles*

Hi there!

This week,  the diecut challenge at Stuck On U Sketches is to use circles. I have to admit, I'm not big on circles. I use them once in a while as an accent, but I don't often make them the centre of my layout. But, I had these photos on my desk, right beside a bunch of scraps from the Basic Grey Capture line, so I just started cutting circles. And here's the final result.


Papers: Basic Grey, Fancy Pants Design, American Crafts; Diecuts: Spellbinders, George Cricut Cartridge, Vaudoo font; Stickers: Stamping Station, Basic Grey, American Crafts, Two Peas in a Bucket; Embellishments: Teresa Collins Brads, Tim Holtz paper clips, Tiny Attacher; Stamps: American Crafts; Washi Tape: 7 Gypsies, My Minds Eye
 
There's nothing earth shattering about this layout. This was a story I really wanted to get down and I love how many scraps I was able to use up! I found that using the Spellbinders was a lot faster and easier than using my Cricut. And some of the smaller circles are punches - even faster and easier!
 
So, now it's your turn! Why not create a project using circles and upload it to the blog over at SOUS. Your name will be entered to win a prize from our monthly sponsor, Scrapbook Circle. (Ironic, isn't it? HA!)
 
                                     

This will be my last project for Stuck On U Sketches. I have decided to take a break for a while and focus on my kids before they leave me, forever! ;)  I want to thank Leah and Nanne for the wonderful opportunity.  It's been a lot of fun. And you never know. Once the kids leave home, I may be begging them for my spot back!

Thanks for looking!
Sylvie

May 15, 2014

Hydrangea - SOUS Diecut Challenge *3D*

Hi there!

This week's Stuck On U Sketches diecut challenge was to create something that was 3D. This couldn't have come at a better time for me, as I am in the middle of doing a major redecorating of my living room.  And I love incorporating my love of paper crafts into my home decorating. And it's no secret that I am totally inspired by Pinterest. So I was really excited when I came upon a pin for this website: http://liagriffith.com/make-these-gorgeous-paper-hydrangeas/ .

 
 
The website includes a free SVG file for the blooms and the leaves and the instructions were so easy to follow. I cut three sheets of blooms and before I removed them from the cutting mat, I painted the centres of each bloom with watercolours and then let dry. A little glue gun work, some wires and voila! Pinterest success! Once the flowers were done, I needed a pretty vase to put them in. Pinterest to the rescue, again. I painted this old flower arrangement vase with Elmers glue, food colouring and water. Another success!



So, now it's your turn. Why not create something with your diecutter that is 3D and upload a link to the SOUS blog and your name will be entered to win a lovely prize from our monthly sponsor, Scrapbook Circle.


Thanks for looking!
Sylvie

May 1, 2014

This Boy @ 17 - SOUS Diecut Challenge "Tree"

Hello there!

The die cut challenge this week at Stuck On U Sketches was to use a tree. And since I did a page all about Julia last time, I thought I should do one about Nick. But unlike Julia, Nick doesn't take a bunch of selfies that I can steal, I mean use, for scrapbooking. So, after a bunch of begging, I was able to stage a photo shoot of him beside the tree in our back yard and of the six photos he let me take, I settled on this one. Ah. Gotta love teenage boys!

Papers: Basic Grey, Bazzill Basics; Cricut Cartridge: Storybook, George, 2Peas digital cutfile; Stickers & diecuts: Bo Bunny, Basic Grey, Studio Calico; Badges: 2Peas in a Bucket, American Crafts; Alphas: American Crafts Thickers, Echo Park; Misc: Studio Calico mists, Tim Holtz Tiny Attacher, My Minds Eye washi tape, Ranger Distress Ink
 
I'm really enjoying this type of "you are here" journaling. It's nothing fancy and it's easy to write, but it really does say who Nick is, right now. And I think these are the pages that we will look back on, someday and really remember what he was up to.
 
I know this diecut from Storybook is actually called a branch, but the tree in our backyard is a big willow and I think this diecut really looks like the shape of our tree.
 
And I have been hoarding these Bo Bunny word stickers for probably 5 years. They matched the Basic Grey Capture line perfectly. I just love using old supplies with new supplies!
 


So now it's your turn! Let's see what you can create using a diecut of a tree. Submit it to the SOUS blog and you could win a great monthly prize. And be sure to check out all the lovely work the other DT girls did using a tree. It will inspire you!

Thanks for looking!

Sylvie

April 17, 2014

This Girl - SOUS Diecut Challenge *Spring*

Hi there!

This week's challenge on Stuck On U Sketches was to use a diecut depicting "Spring". In my world, that means birds, butterflies and my girl preparing to graduate high school. This page started with a great journaling idea from Cathy Zielske. Cathy posted a page on her blog about her daughter in this "just the facts, ma'am" style of journaling.



Papers: My Minds Eye, Bazzill Basics, American Crafts, Crate Paper, 
unknown vellum; Diecuts: Two Peas in a Bucket, scale-files.blogspot.ca; 
Embellishments: American Crafts, My Minds Eye; Studio Calico; Stamps: 
American Crafts, Studio Calico, 7 Gypsies; Inks: Stampin Up!, Distress Ink, 
Doodlebug;  Punch: Martha Stewart; Mists: Studio Calico, Alpha 
Stickers: Basic Grey; machine stitching

The background was greated using lots and lots of mist. Then, I found this beautiful cut file created by Wilna Furstenburg for Two Peas in a Bucket and started building from there. For a bit of extra dimension, I painted the leaves and hearts with some spray mists that were diluted with water. Because of all the water, the swirls and leaves curled all on their own - a happy accident!



The bird diecut was from MTCSCAL e-files and it was also painted with diluted mists. All the journaling spots were stamped with stamps and then I typed the journaling with my typewriter. Don't look too closely or you will see all my typos. Now I remember why we went to computers!  LOL!



So now it is your turn. Why don't you share your work on the SOUS blog showing us your "spring" diecuts and your name will be entered to win a prize from our monthly sponsor, Scrapbook Circle.


And here's some news!  SOUS is having a Design Team call! There are openings in the Diecut, Project Life or the Sketch teams. For more information on how to joint these fabulous teams, just check out all the information on the blog!


Thanks for looking!
Sylvie

April 3, 2014

It's Only Four Months - SOUS Diecut Challenge "Window"

Hi there!

This week's Stuck On U Sketches diecut challenge was to use a window on a project. Immediately, I knew that would be the perfect embellishment for some photos I had from last winter, when my son and I moved to the neighbouring town so he could play rep hockey.

Papers: Studio Calico, Bazzill Basics, Echo Park; Diecut: Fabulous Finds; 
Embellishments: Studio Calico, American Crafts, Elle's Studio, Crate Paper, 
Fancy Pants, My Minds Eye; Stamps: Imaginese, Sassafrass Lass; Stickers: 
Thickers, Fancy Pants, American Crafts, Buttons: Fancy Pants;, Mist: Studio Calico

I made the window from a shape on the Fabulous Finds cartridge. It's supposed to be a tag, but I layered some long narrow rectangles on top and bottom and called it a window. I cut the window a few times on kraft cardstock and glued it all together so that it looked more like chipboard.

                                       

I had a lot of journaling for this page, so I folded a piece of cardstock in half and using washi tape, I made a booklet out of my journaling cards and more patterned paper. I also added some Facebook status screenshots to help support my story. I will just cut a slit in the page protector, so that the flaps can be opened.


I love this page. It's a story about kind of a difficult time in our lives, but I am happy that it's been recorded finally. It's one of those stories that I tend to put off because it seems so daunting. There is so much to be said. But, once I started working on it, this page took on a life of it's own.

So, now it's your turn!  Why not join us at SOUS and join in the fun? Show us your diecut project using a window and your name will be entered to win a lovely prize pack from Scrapbook Circle! How fun is that?


Thanks for looking!
Sylvie